A fiber laser is a type of optical laser that includes a clad fiber rather than a rod, a slab, or a disk. Fiber lasers reflect light through an optical cavity such that a stream of photons stimulates atoms in a fiber that store and release light energy at useful wavelengths. Fiber type, core size, numerical aperture, refractive index, and doping of the fiber contribute to the range and possibilities of light propagation using fiber lasers.
A fiber laser 100 is shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B. Fiber laser 100 may include a core 102 surrounded by a cladding 104 and a protective coating 106. Core 102 may have a different refractive index than cladding 104. Depending on size, refractive index, and wavelength, core 102 may be single mode or multi-mode although single mode is preferred for many applications. Core 102 may be made of a variety of materials including well-known silica-based materials. Core 102 may include a dopant 103 from the lanthanide series of chemicals including Erbium or Ytterbium that release light energy at useful wavelengths. Fiber laser 100 may be illuminated by a light source 110, e.g., a laser diode. Light source 110 may be a single diode, an array of diodes, or many separate pump diodes, each with a fiber going into a coupler. Fiber laser 100 may further include a grating 114 at both ends of coil 111 to manipulate or otherwise filter light source 110 and deliver it as a laser beam 116. Fiber laser 100 may be used in a variety of applications including welding heavy sheets of metal, cutting high-strength steel used to produce automobiles, cutting and drilling concrete, and microscale and nanoscale machining.
In some applications, fiber laser 100 may have a length between several millimeters and hundreds of meters, most commonly in the 1-30 meter range. Fiber laser 100 may be coiled 111 with a generally permissible bend radius in the 10-20 millimeters. Fiber laser 100 may release heat during operation that requires efficient heat removal to avoid damaging core 102 or cladding 104.
Fiber laser 100 may have a relatively small diameter that is susceptible to breakage during handling, e.g., coiling, splicing, cleaving, coating, transporting, packaging, and the like. Breakage results in undesirable yield loss, which may be avoided by properly packaging fiber laser 100. Further, high power fiber laser applications often require robust thermal management that include the use of thermally conductive potting compounds (not shown) applied to grooves machined into a metal plate or other housing (not shown) that support or hold in place fiber laser 100. In a situation where fiber laser 100 needs repair, fiber laser 100 is accessed by first processing the machined metal plate to remove the potting compound. The machined metal plate may be re-used or scrapped after processing. Further yet, an alternative to using potting compound in packaging fiber laser 100 involves using tape, e.g., kapton tape, to restrain fiber laser 100 against the grooves of the machined metal plate or other housing. But using tape as a restraint is often aesthetically displeasing leading to a perception of poor workmanship. A need remains for an improved protective, cost efficient, and aesthetically pleasing packaging for fiber laser 100.